The Celestial Beast was so frightened by this smile that it retreated several steps.
Gu Xi, however, smiled, blinking her large eyes that matched her exceptionally innocent face: [Just kidding.]
Her voice was extremely sincere: [Don’t worry, I won’t do anything. I’m a good person.]
Who would believe that?
The Celestial Beast patted its little heart: [What exactly do you want?]
Gu Xi: [Nothing. Didn’t you say it yourself? You’re going to other Three Thousand Minor Worlds to complete tasks. I’m afraid you’ll be lonely all by yourself, so I want to accompany you.]
The Celestial Beast: [I believe you, my…]
Before the word “ass” could escape its mouth, Gu Xi’s patience for explanations seemed to have run out. Her gaze toward the Celestial Beast was clear, obedient, and gentle, and the smile at the corner of her lips grew even warmer.
[If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll use the Blood Pact to kill you, okay?]
[Just treat me like an ordinary Host and take me to the Three Thousand Minor Worlds to complete tasks. Understood?]
Even though she was saying something as chilling as “killing someone,”
she appeared utterly innocent, touching her bun as naturally as if she were describing the day’s weather.
The Celestial Beast was so scared that it tucked its tail tip behind itself, wiping the sweat from its forehead.
[Understood, understood… I get it… I get it…]
Satisfied, Gu Xi raised her hand and patted the Celestial Beast’s head as if petting a puppy: [Good.]
Celestial Beast: …
Gu Xi rested her chin on her hand, her fair, soft cheeks revealing two shallow dimples: [Little Beast, what’s your name? Did that dead guy Heavenly Dao give you a name?]
Celestial Beast: …
She actually called its great master, Heavenly Dao, a dead guy. Was it hallucinating? Surely not?
Surely not?
Seeing it remain silent, Gu Xi said: [No name? Then let’s call you Dummy.]
Dummy—it sounded like a dog’s name.
The Celestial Beast bristled, angrily waving its little paws.
[I-I-I… I’m not called Dummy! I’m a divine beast! My real name is Celestial! How dare you give me a dog’s name! You-you-you…]
[Oh, then let’s call you Little Celestial.]
[Little Chicken? How dare you! I’m a dignified divine beast! My name is Celestial! Not some little chicken!]
[Oh~ then let’s call you Little Heaven.]
The Celestial Beast was speechless.
It simply couldn’t win an argument against this woman. Besides, she had bound it with a Blood Pact, so it could only curse silently in its heart: #￥%…&*
On the bench.
Gu Xi gazed in a certain direction in the distance, a flicker of darkness passing through her eyes.
But when she looked up again, her expression quickly returned to normal, once again brimming with a starry smile.
[Little Heaven, it’s time for us to go. This Minor Realm we’re in isn’t fun. Let’s go to other Three Thousand Minor Worlds to complete tasks.]
The young girl propped up her umbrella, straightened the corner of her clothes, and slowly stood up.
The Celestial Beast wept silently in its heart.
All it wanted now was to go home!
The Three Thousand Minor Worlds were too terrifying! The moment it descended, it had run into this great demon!
But the thought of the Blood Pact made the Celestial Beast’s tears flow even more. It couldn’t leave anymore, never again.
Master, its master, Heavenly Dao, hopefully would soon realize it was missing and come to its rescue.
It shouldn’t have sneaked down to prove itself!
It never wanted to prove itself again in this lifetime!
The Celestial Beast sniffled, but now it had no choice but to obey Gu Xi’s commands and become her labor force.
With a heavy sigh of despair, it reluctantly opened the Panel: [Great Dem… no, no… Your Majesty, which Minor Realm would you like to go to?]
The voice of the Celestial Beast reached Gu Xi’s ears, while several Minor Realms shrank into small glowing orbs, floating around the Celestial Beast.
The sound of rain ceased as Gu Xi closed her umbrella. “Any one will do. You choose.”
As long as it wasn’t this Minor Realm. The Netherworld had likely already detected her aura and pinpointed the Minor Realm she was currently in. Soon, they would undoubtedly turn this Minor Realm upside down.
“Alright,” the Celestial Beast nodded, beginning to search through them one by one.
Suddenly, as if spotting something, the Celestial Beast’s eyes lit up, and the Little Beast looked extremely excited.
“Your Majesty! There’s a Minor Realm here! This one is completely different from the others! It’s marked with three red exclamation points!”
“Out of all the Minor Realms, only this one has exclamation marks!”
“Based on my years of experience as a divine beast and my understanding of my master, since he marked this world with three red exclamation points, it means he highly recommends systems to go there! It must be an excellent world!”
“Your Majesty! Let’s choose this one! Get ready, we’re setting off!”
Gu Xi nodded.
Her attention was entirely focused on the aura from the Netherworld, paying no mind to which world the Celestial Beast had chosen.
She never imagined that, in the future, it would be because of the Celestial Beast’s one wrong step leading to another…
She would be locked in the imperial palace day and night by that person…
This incident would also become the most humiliating and least mentioned existence in the Underworld King’s millions of years of life.
A faint halo of light dispersed.
By the time everything returned to calm, the white-dressed maiden and the Little Beast were no longer in sight.
Mortal Realm.
Kingdom of Chu, Imperial Palace.
Golden sunlight filtered through the carved gold windows, casting dappled shadows onto the bed.
The woman on the bed slowly opened her eyes.
“Her Highness is awake!”
“Quickly inform the Noble Consort, and also notify Eunuch Desheng by the Emperor’s side! Her Highness the Princess is awake! Hurry, hurry!”
“Her Highness has finally awakened! We were so frightened!”
As soon as Gu Xi regained consciousness, she heard the excited clamor of the palace maids inside the chamber.
Before she could react, a maid in pink clothes, tears welling in her eyes, rushed to the bedside. “Your Highness! Are you feeling unwell anywhere?”
Gu Xi glanced around the chamber, quickly grasping her current identity and situation.
This was the imperial palace. She was a princess, and she had just awakened from a coma.
She coughed a few times, soothing her dry throat before speaking. “All of you, leave for now. I wish to rest alone for a while.”
“As you command.”
The palace maids withdrew one by one.
The pink-clad maid by the bedside cast a few concerned glances at Gu Xi before slowly retreating and closing the chamber doors.
Inside the chamber, only Gu Xi remained.
“Tell me, what is the situation in this world?”
From the Void Space, the Celestial Beast’s voice emerged. “Your Majesty, the original body’s memories are still loading. They should reach your mind shortly.”
Moments later, an overwhelming flood of memories surged into Gu Xi’s mind like a burst dam.
The original host, Chu Mingxi, was known as the foremost beauty of the Kingdom of Chu. She was the daughter of Emperor Chu and the late empress, the only legitimate princess of the kingdom, bestowed with the title “Yun Xi.”
Though she grew up in the deceitful and treacherous imperial palace, the original host had been doted on by everyone since childhood, protected and raised with care. Her mind was simple and pure, and she inherited the kindness of the late empress, treating others with great warmth. Everyone in the palace liked the original host.
However, two years ago, the late empress passed away. From that day on, the original host began suffering from frequent fainting spells, and her body gradually weakened. The imperial physicians could find no symptoms, ultimately attributing it to excessive grief over the late empress’s death.
This morning, she collapsed outside the palace hall and gradually lost her breath, which was why she was chosen by the Celestial Beast.
Gu Xi held onto the bed curtain, rose from the bed, and sat before the bronze mirror.
The girl in the bronze mirror appeared to be around fourteen or fifteen years old. Though not yet fully grown, she was exceptionally beautiful—a delicate and petite face, pale lips, a fine nose, and long, jet-black hair cascading down to her waist. But the most captivating feature was her eyes, clear and bright like autumn waters.
Perhaps due to her frail health, her complexion was pale, yet this only made her skin appear even fairer. Like a willow swaying in the wind, it added a unique kind of beauty.
Though not as stunning as Gu Xi’s true form, in the mortal realm, she was a rare beauty.
[Pretty, right? Pretty, right? The body I chose for you is the number one beauty of the Chu Kingdom!]
The Celestial Beast’s annoying voice echoed in the Void Space.
As someone who values appearances, the Celestial Beast certainly knew how to choose.
Just as Gu Xi was about to speak, her body couldn’t hold up, and she began coughing.
She coughed until tears welled in the corners of her eyes. When she removed the handkerchief, a large patch of bloodstains was clearly visible on it.
She immediately smiled, the curve of her lips deepening as she stared motionlessly at the Celestial Beast, who felt a chill run down its spine.
An eerie silence fell over the hall.
The Celestial Beast swallowed hard: [Well… that… it’s true, her body is a bit weak.]
Gu Xi narrowed her eyes, placing her slender fingers on her wrist to check her pulse.
Seeing her take her pulse, the Celestial Beast quickly asked: [How is it? What’s wrong with the original host’s body?]
The smile on Gu Xi’s lips remained unchanged, but a meaningful glint flashed in her eyes: [She was poisoned…]
[Author’s Note]:
Warning! Reminder again! The male lead in this book is not a good person, nor is the female lead. Both are wolves in sheep’s clothing, and they become somewhat unhinged later on. If you don’t like this style, please exit early. Love you~